Pain: The New Normal

Written by craig

Imagine a world without pain, where everyone felt good about themselves and each other, where there realy was "perfect harmony." Hold that vision close to your heart, and take it with you when you leave, because I'm going to definitely pass on that one.

The really sad thing is that people come into my office because they're in pain and, get this, they think that if they were "normal" they wouldn't have any! (Puh-leeze!)

Think about how much of our lives is spent trying to avoid pain. If we don't eat, we have hunger pains. In fact, we tend to fly out of the womb screaming our heads off and looking for the nearest nipple. Nature hardwired us to hurt like hell until our lips got plugged in to those "original" fuel cells.

If we don't sleep, we are exhausted and miserable. We know better than to stick hour hands over an open flame, play in the snow without a coat, kick the school bully in the butt, or be comletely honest with our true loves (unless you're one of those people who enjoys celibacy). While we're on this topic, you can't know true misery unless you've been a thirteen-year-old in the throws of unrequited love.

Without the pain, there would be ho civilization, no art, no humanity. I get that; really I do, and I preach it regularly. Now, I'm not encouraging everyone to rush out and hit their heads with a two-by-four. When I'm miserable from the cold, I put on a jacket. When I'm hungry, I like a good burger. I eat, sleep, and excrete regularly to avoid the acquisition of unwanted pain. 

That's also the reason I take that little pill each night.